


Of Trolls and their Humans

by SlaveToMyKeyboard



Category: Homestuck
Genre: Caliginous Romance | Kismesis, Don't ask me how, Feralstuck, Flushed Romance | Matesprits, Humans as their handlers, Humans don't understand quadrants, It's like a zoo, Multi, Pale Romance | Moirallegiance, Petstuck, Relationship Fluff, They also don't understand Alternian, Trolls with crushes on Humans, Unrequited Crush, Unrequited Kismesissitude, Unrequited Moirallegiance, but the Trolls can understand English, literal fluff, no-accident Mituna, on Jade's island, past trauma, trolls as pets
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-01-14
Updated: 2016-03-18
Packaged: 2018-05-13 22:30:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 14,949
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5719411
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SlaveToMyKeyboard/pseuds/SlaveToMyKeyboard
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"On an island in the middle of a non-descript ocean, there is a rather large, white building up on top of a hill. At the foot of this hill, there is a cage, and inside this cage there is a Troll."</p><p>Wherein Trolls are kept and trained at a reserve on Jade's island, and one happens to be particularly attached to his handler, much to the irritation of his mate.</p><p>Ongoing and sporadic updates. Suggestions of pairings or situations welcome!<br/>((Has an underlying plot, but mostly just a continuous collection of ficlets focussing on certain pairings. Details on quadrants of existing pairings in notes.))</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Just Another Evening

**Author's Note:**

> This is getting longer than I expected, so I'll post the pairings by chapter here as a quick reference;
> 
> Ch 1 - red Erikar and pale Eridave  
> Ch 2 - red Erikar and pale Eridave  
> Ch 3 - red Erikar and pale Eridave and light red/pale rosemary  
> Ch 4 - light black Johnkat and suggested pale Tervris  
> Ch 5 - red Mitula, pale Crotuna, red Cronkri and black Mitkri  
> Ch 6 - pale Porkri  
> Ch 7 - black/pale Johndavekat (black on Karkat's side), light red Johndave/Pepsicola/Hammertime and suggested black Erisol  
> Ch 8 - pale Tervris, red/pale Johnvris and suggested red/pale Daverezi  
> Ch 9 - red/pale Johnvris and suggested red/pale Daverezi  
> Ch 10 - multiple
> 
> Coming Next  
> Ch 11 - ???  
> (Tell me what you want to see! Even if it isn't in this chapter, there's a good chance it will appear later)

On an island in the middle of a non-descript ocean, there is a rather large, white building up on top of a hill. At the foot of this hill, there is a cage, and inside this cage there is a Troll. He is curled into a ball, face buried in his arms and tail wrapped around his legs. His whole body is covered by a layer of soft, short, grey fur, all except for his head, which sprouts unruly black hair around a pair of small horns. You are not this Troll. You are the one next to him – or perhaps _under_ him would be a more apt description.

You are the sea-dweller with the purple streak in your hair, and a lilac fin where there should be black fluff at the end of your tail. You have been awake for some time, staring at the ceiling of your cave and finding pictures in the cracks, but since it’s still technically daytime, your mate continues his slumber. You wrap your arms around his back and press his warm, little body against your chest. He grumbles in his sleep, but then uncovers his face and snuggles up under your chin. You’re glad this didn’t wake him up; he’s grouchy at the best of times and nobody likes having their sleep cut short, even if it is their Matesprit trying to give them a cuddle.

It is only once the sun has begun to set that he finally stirs, rolling off to the side and stretching as he yawns, showing rows of blunt teeth with four moderately pointed fangs. He’s the physical opposite to you in almost every way; burning hot instead of icy cold, so small that he only just reaches past your armpit, all soft edges and curves instead of sharp teeth and claws. Even his fur feels different, lacking the waterproofing that yours gained after your first moult when you were still a wiggler. But it’s these differences that make your bloodpusher flutter when you’re around him, and as he looks up at you with those beautiful red eyes, you think it may have actually forgotten how to beat for a moment.

You chirrup to him and nuzzle his nose, “Evenin’ Kar.”

He chirps back sleepily, not yet capable of constructing a word this early in the night. Then as you begin your usual routine of grooming his fur back into place, he wakes up a little and returns the favour. You’re both still purring when you finish, the licks transitioning to trails of kisses and as your lips meet he crawls into your lap, kneading at your chest with his claws. This is pretty much what happens every evening since you were paired with Karkat almost a perigee ago, but it always feels so special, like you’re in your own little bubble.

“Wakey, wakey everyone!”

A familiar voice breaks through your blissful shell of intimacy, drawing both of your attentions to the bars over the little window of your cave. You recognise Jade the Human’s voice as she continues to deliver wake-up calls to the rest of the Trolls, skipping down the path between all of your daytime quarters. The Rose Human follows after her, and then they split off to attend to the Trolls in the top half of the section. Your fins begin to wiggle with excitement, and you bound up to the bars in anticipation of your Human. Well, he’s not _yours_ technically, but you know that you’re his favourite and the feeling is most definitely mutual.

Then when you spot his red shirt and pale hair, you can’t help fidgeting and whining as you sit with your hands through the bars. Karkat is considerably less excited, preferring to stay in the nest and pretend that he hasn’t noticed the Humans’ arrival. He’ll growl at them if they talk to him though, which they’re sometimes scared of, but usually just think is funny or cute. You watch Dave intently as he writes things down on a clipboard, getting more impatient every second that he isn’t looking at you. He knows it too, which is why he deliberately ignores you until he’s standing right next to the bars. Then he turns and smiles at you, and you wag your tail for him in return. Trolls don’t usually wag their tails, and it took a while for you to figure out how to get a good rhythm, but the Humans seem to like it so it always nets you some extra attention.

“Evening Eribubbles, or I guess it’s morning for you guys huh?”

You love the nickname he gave you, even if it is a bit wigglerish and longer than your actual name. He reaches through the bars and you butt your head against his palm, trilling softly as he scratches between your horns. You like Dave; his hands are so warm, just like Karkat, and he always talks to you like you’re a person, not just some senseless animal. Sometimes you wish he could just climb into your cage and snuggle up with you like a palemate would. God you wish Humans understood Moirailegence. And Alternian, that would probably come in handy.

“Hey Karkat!”

Another Human appears beside Dave, grinning and waving at the sour-faced Troll behind you. Karkat ignores him completely, instead wandering over to slip his arms around your chest from behind, pressing his cheek between your shoulder blades. He always does this when Dave gives you attention, even though you’ve told him a thousand times that you would always choose him over the Human.

“I don’t get it Dave,” John sighs, giving up on his attempts to catch your mate’s attention, “how come Eridan lets you treat him like a dog, but I can’t even get Karkat to look at me!”

“It’s the Strider allure,” Dave replies smugly, “They just flock to it, like I’m some kind of Trollnip.”

You laugh and Karkat scoffs, squeezing you tighter.

“Hmm,” John hums thoughtfully “I wonder if –”

“John, dude don’t!”

You feel someone that isn’t Dave touch the side of your face, and immediately whip around to snap at them.

“Oh God!” John recoils, jumping back and holding his _completely undamaged_ hand to his chest as if you bit one of his fingers off.

What a wiggler.

“Tried to warn you man,” Dave replies, sharing your unsympathetic attitude towards John’s reaction, “sea-dwellers aren’t pushovers.”

Karkat sniggers into your fur.

“And land Trolls are?” John mutters, frowning at you all in turn as he rubs his _still uninjured_ appendage.

“John are you bugging Karkat again?” Jade walks over and stands in front of him with her arms folded.

He opens his mouth to reply, but Dave gets there first.

“He tried to stroke Eri and almost lost a finger.”

You pout at your handler because that is a complete exaggeration, but then he starts scratching behind your fin and all you can do is purr.

“Do I need to remind you again how Jade’s grandfather lost his foot?” Rose says as she joins the gathering.

“No,” John replies, sounding like kid who’s been scolded, “I just want one of them to like me.”

Jade smiles and pats his shoulder, “They will, I promise, you just haven’t been here long enough for them to get to know you.”

“Why don't we go and prepare their food?” Rose suggests, “The way to a Troll’s heart is through their stomach after all.”

She’s not wrong there; the first time you let Dave pet you was after he smuggled in a whole coddamn squid for you.

John nods and happily follows the female Humans as they head back to the tall, white building. Dave remains a few seconds longer, giving you one last pat on the head, before collecting his things and going off after them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My attempt at writing animalistic Trolls, I hope you enjoyed it!
> 
> I may update this later on with other Troll/Troll or Troll/Human interactions - I really want to try Kanaya/Rose where Rose dresses Kanaya up for a show or something - so suggest some ships or situations if you want to see more (not sure if I want to include smut yet, but I might consider it.)


	2. We Need A Distraction

You are now the Dave Human, walking back to Jade’s mansion-tower of science, plants and historical shit. Jade herself is a few paces in front of you, trying to comfort your friend John, who was just rejected in his attempts to befriend one of the Trolls. He always thinks he’s doing something wrong, but as he keeps getting told, it’s just because they don’t know him yet. Some of them are more trusting than others, like the younger sea-dweller girl Feferi, who will follow you around the perimeter of her cage, and the little one with the all black tail, Nepeta – in spite of the way her over-protective and _very large_ housemate Equius threatens anyone who even looks at her.

John has brightened up by the time you climb the hill to the entrance of Jade’s house, declaring that he’ll befriend a Troll by the end of the month as he strolls into the living room. The older staff are already resting there, sprawled across the couches with one of English’s crappy movies playing in the background. It looks like the blue alien one, which he says is a good example of how Trolls might behave if they’d been left without human intervention. For once, you actually agree with him, even if you’re still not sure about the movie itself.

“Morning everyone, how were the betas?” Jane asks as you all plop down on the remaining seats, the term ‘betas’ referring to the younger set of Trolls that you care for.

John steals the last chair with a face that says ‘I deserve it because your Troll tried to bite me’, so you end up cramped on the sofa with the Lalonde sisters. Eridan isn’t technically _your_ Troll – if we’re getting legal about this then he actually belongs to the English-Harley family, although none of you think that trolls should be ‘owned’ as such – but considering you’re the only one he actually seems happy to receive affection from, everyone just says he’s yours. Which is fine, all Trolls have their favourites you guess. _You_ shouldn’t have favourites, but it’s hard not to when they’re so human-like. You’re also pretty sure they can understand what you say to them, especially from the way they sound like they’re laughing sometimes, or how they react to some of your comments.

“They’re great,” Jade replies, “some of them might even be ready for a show this year.”

“Yes, Kanaya has been improving every day,” Rose agrees as she pulls out her knitting bag and continues her laptop-cosy, “I might even bring her along for the May Fair.”

You’re not sure why a laptop would need to be kept warm, seeing as that’s usually a bad thing for a computer to be, but you might ask her to knit you one when she’s done. For ironic purposes obviously.

Dirk nods, “I think it’d do her good to see how the others perform, and we can see if she freaks out around lots of people.”

You continue to chat about which Trolls will – or will not – be going to what shows as you drink your morning beverages. The two groups are allowed to mix once you let them out of their daytime cages, but they mostly choose to stay separated, so you rarely interact with the older ones. You’re relieved to hear that they’re still having just as much trouble as you are, with only a third of their group being remotely well behaved enough to leave the island. As usual, Rufioh, Porrim and Aranea crop up as the most likely candidates, with Damara, Kankri and Cronus being at the bottom of the list.

Trolls tend to gravitate more towards one person if they have multiple Human caretakers, and that person will then be responsible for their training and taking them to shows. So far out of your group, only Rose has managed to get this sort of connection, to the point where she can groom and dress Kanaya with absolutely no problems at all. You like to think that you’re almost there with Eridan, but since he spends most of his time with Karkat, it’s been difficult to see how he’d react when there weren’t bars between you. You need a distraction for the little guy, and as you listen to John tell everyone how Karkat won’t even growl at him anymore, you think you may have found it.

You decide to broach the subject as you prepare the Trolls’ food – which is far more complicated than simply chopping up some meat and fish, since you quickly discovered that Trolls have a similar diet to humans – leaning on the counter next to John after he’s put several slabs of meat into the oven.

“You look like you want something,” He says, frowning as he searches your blank expression for an answer, “why do you look like you want something?”

You decide to cut straight to the point, “I need you to distract Karkat for me later.”

His eyes narrow, “Why?”

“I want to try going in with Eridan, but Karkat will probably tear my face off as soon as I get one foot through the door, so I want you feed him outside whilst I go indoors with Eridan.”

“You want _me_ to get between Karkat and his mate?” John stares at you as if you’ve just asked him to jump off of a cliff, “Forget tearing my face off, he’ll shred me to pieces!”

“You don’t have to come in, just talk to him through the food slot or something, he might even end up liking you.” You finish with a shrug.

John runs a hand through his hair, then sighs and gives in, “Fine, fine, but don’t blame me if you lose a hand or something.”

You nod in thanks and pat him on the shoulder, then go back to dissecting the fish taking up most of the countertop.

The Trolls are all out in their night-time pen when you get back from the kitchens with their evening meals, wearing their clothes and chattering to each other in their strange little language that’s a mix of animal sounds and something vaguely human. Most people argue that Trolls don’t need clothes because they’ve got fur, but yours are more than happy to dress themselves. Some even seem to prefer covering up, and honestly you prefer it too, it makes it less awkward when they jump up at you or lay in weird positions.

Eridan and Karkat are together by their cave, as you expected, so you send John off to one side whilst you make your way over to the gate.

“Food time Karkat!” John calls once you give him the thumbs up, “Come on little buddy! Come on!”

You roll your eyes as he starts patting his knees like he’s calling a dog. Honestly, and he wonders why none of them like him. Karkat doesn’t seem impressed, and after what looks like a raised eyebrow in Egbert’s direction, he continues ripping petals off of the nearby flowers. John looks at you and holds his arms out as if to say ‘what do I do with this?’, but before you get a chance to advise him, you notice Eridan give Karkat a little shove towards your friend. Karkat is reluctant at first, but eventually gets up and plods his way over, snatching the first piece of food that John passes through to him.

Okay, John looks happy, and Karkat looks like he isn’t going to kill you. Cool, time to make your move.

“Hey Eri, breakfast time.” You say quietly, waving the box of fish at Eridan to encourage him inside.

You probably didn’t need to give him the fish, but it’s a good thing to distract him with whilst you stealthily close the door to the outside. His fins prick up at the sound, but he doesn’t react beyond that. You wait a few seconds to see if everything is alright on John’s end, then unlock the personnel entrance and slip inside. Eridan almost drops the rest of his fish when he notices that you are no longer on the other side of the bars, and for a moment you’re slightly worried because he just kind of stares at you with a scaly tail hanging out from between his shark-like teeth.

“Want some more?” You crouch down and put the open fish box on the floor, nudging it towards him a little.


	3. Look Cute For Me

You are now Eridan the Troll again and you wonder if there was something in this fish you’re eating, because your oculars are trying to tell you that Dave is _inside_ your cave. You blink a couple of times and take the fish out of your mouth. Nope, he’s still there. Dave the Human has actually come into your cave. He’s crouched on the floor a few steps away, watching you expectantly with that expression you can never quite figure out. There’s a food box in front of him but who gives a flying fuck about that. It feels as if something is flooding your chest with this warm, light feeling, letting your fins lift you up like wings as they flutter. You want to drag him into your pile and smother him with cuddles, but you restrain yourself because it would probably freak him out.

A slight heaviness settles in your stomach when you remember that Humans don’t do Moirailegence. At least not in the way Trolls do. No matter how close Dave lets you get to being pale with him, he’ll never understand what it means to you, then you’ll do something to ruin it like you did with Feferi and lose him forever. Then you realise that Dave has stood up and he’s probably going to leave because you’ve just been staring at him like an idiot and _please please please don’t go!_

“Wwait!” You scrabble to your feet, half-jumping towards him.

You rarely stand up around the Humans, so it’s a pleasant surprise to find that you and Dave are almost the same height, not including your horns. He crouches down and pats the floor next to him, taking a piece of fish from the box. You sink back to your knees and shuffle over to him, slowly so as not to frighten him.

“Yeah, that’s it, come on.” He coos quietly, gradually closing the gap between you.

You’re so close that your knees are almost touching. You glance at the fish, then back at him, then decide to just go for it and ignore the food to rub your face on his shoulder. You feel him give the tiniest flinch, but other than that he doesn’t move. A whine slips past your teeth and you push your forehead against him, then there’s a warm hand in your hair and it’s all you can do not to throw yourself at him. He won’t understand, he doesn’t know, but you still want him so badly.

You can’t tell how long you stay like that, enjoying his presence in equal measure with trying to control yourself. You wonder if he’s okay with this and open your mouth a few times to talk to him, but then remember that he won’t understand you, so you eventually decide on chirring at him in the hopes that he’ll get what you’re trying to ask. He also settles for a noise rather than words, a sort of humming-laugh that makes his chest bounce slightly. You think that means he’s happy, maybe you should try a hug or something?

He sits down fully and crosses his legs as you move closer to him, threading your arms under his and then wrapping them around his torso. His hand gets left behind when you shift your head to rest it on his chest, but once you’re still again he resumes petting your hair.

“You’re just a big softie, aren’t you bubbles?” He says, running his blunt claws down your neck and across your shoulders, then back up to between your horns again.

A shiver runs down your spine, and you squeeze him tighter as a loud purr erupts from your chest. Wow, you’ve only ever purred this loudly around Karkat before. Oh wait, Karkat, he’d kill both of you if he saw you like this. You lift your head to glance at the door to the outside, relieved to see that Dave had the brilliant hindsight to close it before coming in here.

“Don’t worry, John’s keeping your boyfriend busy.” He says, patting your head reassuringly.

How does he always know what you’re thinking? You know your eyes must be huge and creepy as you gaze up at him from your half-laying-down position across his lap, but it doesn’t seem to bother Dave at all. He always wears dayguards over his eyes, so you’ve never actually seen them properly, but you’ve learned to read the other subtle changes to his expression, like the way one corner of his mouth twitches upwards as he runs his fingers through the violet part of your hair.

Then you hear footsteps and Dave looks up to the window, “Hey Rose, check it out.”

A moment later, Rose appears on the other side of the bars, her eyebrows arching slightly in a mixture of surprise and concern.

“Dave, you didn’t tell me that you were going to try this.”

He shrugs, “It worked though.”

“Yes but that is beside the point.”

They continue arguing about why Dave should or shouldn’t have told the others about his plan, but you zone out until another voice joins the hushed conversation.

“Eridan.”

You look up and see Kanaya’s pretty, heart-shaped face smiling down at you.

You offer a slight smile in return, “Hey Kan.”

Your scarf still lays coiled up in your nest – you always take it off for mealtimes – but around her neck is a bright red ribbon, tied neatly into a small bow just above where her collar attaches to her lead. You really want Dave to give you a collar, it’d be so fun to go on walks with him around the island. Maybe you could even convince Karkat to let John take him and then all four of you could go together.

“I did not know that you were on such close terms with your handler.” Kanaya says, wrapping her delicate fingers around the bars as she stands on tiptoes to get a better look in.

“I didn’t either; he just wwaltzed in today wwith my food an’ wwe ended up like this.”

She laughs a little, “Well regardless of the steps taken to get here, you two certainly suit each other.”

She turns to chirrup at her own Human companion, receiving gentle pat on the head in return. You can tell that Kanaya feels the same about Rose as you do about Dave, she understands your pain and if you didn’t both have your diamonds set on these Humans, you would probably consider being Moirails with her instead.

Then you feel Dave’s legs move a little and can’t help whining because you don’t ever want him to get up ever again.

“Oh man I gotta go do the rest of my rounds,” He says, reaching into his pocket, “but first, I need you to look cute for me Eri.”

He puts an arm around your shoulders, pulling you up a little so that you’re level with his neck, whilst using his other hand to hold a small, rectangular…thing at arm’s length in front of you. He uses this a lot, usually when talking to someone you can’t see, but he can also make pictures of things appear on it. A lot of them are of you, and often preceded by him calling your name or telling you to do something. Like ‘look cute’ for example, which is hopefully what you manage to do whilst posing with him. Then after he brings the rectangle back towards him, you can tell by his little smile that you totally nailed your cute face.

“Oh how sweet,” Rose says when he shows her, “is that for your blog?”

“Yep, Eri’s fans are gonna love it.”

You have fans? But you’ve never left the island and you’re pretty sure that most of the Trolls here don’t even like you.

“You’re a wonderful model Eridan.” Kanaya tells you, which is high praise coming from the only Troll who gets more pictures taken of them than you.

You smile at her, but then abruptly find yourself frowning as Dave removes your arms from around his torso.

“Don’t go.” You whine, clinging to his sleeve.

He pats your head, “Sorry man, I’ve got other mouths to feed.”

You let him go after that, but you’re sure to give him your best sad face when he glances back at you from the other side of the bars.

“Don’t look at me like that,” He says, “you know the bottom lip thing only works on Jade.”

Dammit, he’s right. You stop pouting and stand up, only to be knocked back down again after Karkat barrels into you as soon as the door is opened. He rubs his face all over you, chirping and whining, then growling when he spots Dave still watching you.

“Fuck off!” He shouts, fur bristling and tail pointed straight upwards as he glares at the window.

“It’s alright, Davve didn’t do anythin’.”

“He locked you in!”

You kiss and nuzzle at his neck to try and distract him, but he only drops his protective stance after the Human is gone.

“It was only ‘cause he kneww you’d hurt him.” You try not to sound like you’re blaming Karkat, because you’re really aren’t, but he’s always so irrational whenever Dave is involved.

“Hurt him? Hah! I’ll fucking kill him if I catch him in here again.”

“Kar please,” You sit up and place your hands on his cheeks, “I lovve that you’re wwillin’ to protect me, but Davve is good to me, good to us, so I wwant you to promise that you wwon’t do anythin’ to him.”

Karkat frowns at you, blunt teeth worrying his bottom lip so much that you’re afraid he’ll make himself bleed. Then his expression softens a little.

“Fine, but if he puts a single one of his ugly, Human toes out of line, it’ll be the only thing left of him.”

You just have to smile at that; you love the way Karkat’s so protective of you, even though you’re the ‘big, strong sea-dweller’ – as the Humans say – and he’s your precious, squishy, little land-dweller.

“Thanks lovve.”

You lean in and kiss him, softly and slowly, from his mouth down to his collarbone and then back up again, feeling him relax as you rub the bases of his horns. He slips his hands up your shirt begins running his fingers over your gills, so lightly that it sends sparks right to your stomach and shivers all the way around your back.

“Flushed for you.” He murmurs, when you’re both purring balls of fur curled up together on the floor.

“Flushed for you.” You repeat back to him, your tails wrapping around each other as he nestles as close to you as Trollishly possible.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Purely self-indulgant EriDave pale fluff, topped off with some EriKar kissy-cuddles. I am not sorry in the slightest.
> 
> Also, never thought I'd be wanting to use Kanaya so much in a fic, but it turns out that my headcanon feralstuck of her is freaking adorable. Who would've guessed.
> 
> I promise we'll meet some other Trolls in the next chapter ^^;


	4. Progress

“Karkat? Karkat, hey, c’mon buddy, come here Karkat!”

You shake the food box and call him again, but as usual the stubborn Troll remains planted firmly on the ground until his mate gives him a nudge. You frown at Dave because it’s been two weeks and Karkat _still_ won’t listen to you, but he just gives you a thumbs up and then heads around to the door where Eridan is already waiting. Your name is John Egbert, and this has become part of your routine ever since that first evening when Dave convinced you to help him; every other night, at the beginning of your feeding rounds, you go with him to distract Karkat whilst he cuddles with the sea-dweller. You’d hoped that it would make one of the Trolls finally like you – even if Karkat is notoriously cantankerous – but if anything you think it’s made him hate you more.

Karkat obviously knows what’s going on, Trolls are too smart for him _not_ to have figured it out by now. You can see it in the way he glances back at his cave before picking up the box you slid through the food slot for him, or how he backs away with it when you sit down in front of the fence. You sigh and rest your chin on your hands. It’s clear that he doesn’t like Dave, and you can kind of understand where he’s coming from, but why doesn’t he trust _you_? You’ve been feeding him, talking to him, sitting with him. Sure you only started doing it to help Dave, but you really enjoy spending time with Karkat, and it’s not your fault that he only pays attention to his own little group unless it’s to pick a fight.

He licks the last of the gravy from his fingers – you gave him meatballs today, which you think are his favourite – and then obediently puts the container back into his side of the food slot. For all of his growling and dirty looks, Karkat is actually a pretty well behaved Troll. You thank him and tell him that he’s a good boy, getting a snort and a pair of rolled eyes in return. It always amazes you how close they are to Humans, heck they even wear clothes and talk to each other. Ugh, you’d give anything to understand their language, but all anyone’s been able to gather so far is that they’re kind of like cats with regards to the sounds they make.

You can tell that Karkat is getting impatient, making tiny little chirps every so often as he watches the door that should open any minute. You’re honestly surprised he isn’t sitting with his nose against it like he did the last few times. Maybe that means you’re getting better at distracting him? You wonder if he’ll listen to you now.

“Karkat?”

He whips around to look at you, his eyes narrowing into a glare. Holy shit, he actually responded when you called his name. A grin stretches across your face as you shuffle closer to the fence. ‘ _Talk to him like a person, not a fucking dog_ ’ Dave had said. Right, you can do that.

“Hey, what’s up man?”

He lets out a low growl but doesn’t break the stare, the red of his eyes still bright even in the gloom of early evening.

“Eh I’m not too bad, same old same old y’know?”

You think he mutters something in his own language, but at the end you distinctly hear the word “fuckass” before he turns away. You’re torn between being offended because he insulted you, and being unbelievably happy that he even bothered to say anything at all. You want to try talking to him some more, seeing as he’s feeling at least moderately conversational, but then the door opens and he shoots off to go smother his mate in cuddles.

“How did it go?” You ask Dave when he comes to stand beside you.

“Pretty good,” He replies, a rare smile tugging at his lips, “I think I’m going to try him on a leash next time.”

“So he was okay with the collar?”

“If it was a pair of Jimmy Choos, then he was like one of those women who would literally kill someone just to be in the same airspace as them.” He says, spinning the collar around one finger, “I thought he was going to cry when I took it off.”

You chuckle at Dave’s analogy; you swear they get stranger by the day. But from what you’ve seen, it’s probably a pretty accurate way to describe Eridan’s reaction. It’s a shame that Trolls only wear their collars when they go out for walks, you think Karkat would look so cool with a spiked one, and it would fit his personality too. Trolls don’t normally care about what they wear, but Eridan loves expensive-looking things, and a black collar with purple jewels studded along it probably fits that bill quite nicely. It has an Aquarius symbol on it too, hanging in brilliant gold alongside his ID tag and matching all of those fancy rings he likes to wear.

Each Troll is born with a little mark on their hip – all except for one nicknamed The Signless – that identifies which Sire or Dam had most influence on their bloodline. Most people find it hilarious because it reminds them of _My Little Pony_ , but what’s more interesting is the fact that twelve of them happen to be the exact same as the human star signs, and it’s these signs that Jade’s grandfather decided to focus on when he started his collection. You’re not sure how the bloodline thing works – Troll breeding is a very strange topic that you try to sidestep whenever possible – but one thing you do know is that Trolls rarely interact with their ‘parents’.

“Karkat seemed calmer this time.” Dave remarks.

“He was!” You agree, giving him a wide smile, “He actually listened to me when I talked to him and everything!”

“Woah man watch out; you might find yourself the object of a weird Troll crush if you keep on like that.”

You laugh and nudge Dave’s arm, “No dude but seriously, I think I made some actual progress, I mean he called me a fuckass and probably a bunch of other names in his weird language, but at least it was something.”

He quirks an eyebrow above his glasses, “You mean he spoke? That’s actually pretty cool.”

It feels like you’ve just won a prize or something, and you can’t hide your excitement as the two of you continue your rounds. Vriska and Terezi try to steal all of the food – as per usual – but when you catch them they put on these adorably innocent faces and you just can’t shout at them. Dave however, has no problem reprimanding them, turning their smiles into frowns until he slips them each a chocolate biscuit after telling them off. This is why they all like him so much, you would never have thought to do that. Maybe you’re just not that good at understanding Trolls? Then you hear a chirp and turn around to see Vriska watching you, her fangs poking over her bottom lip as she smiles. You wave at her and smile back, and after a slight giggle she ducks down under the window. What a strange Troll. You shake your head and catch up with Dave, who is currently dodging splashes of water that Feferi is sending through her cage.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A bit of a shorter update, but it's my first time writing as John so *shrug*
> 
> Think I'm going to make this into Terezi/Vriska, but I'm not sure what quadrant. Guess I'll see how their dynamic works in later chapters. Opinions are very welcome and I hope you enjoyed! ~


	5. Wires and Panties

“Hmmm.” The Human stands back and tilts his head, tapping the screwdriver on his chin before leaning in to poke at your collar again.

Your name is Mituna Captor, and Dirk the Human is… Well, okay you’re not actually sure what he’s doing, but it has something to do with your psionics. He’s put these weird clips over your largest set of horns, with little cables attaching them to a box on the floor, whilst your smaller set are linked to a rather bulky loop of metal around your neck.

“It’s all wired up right,” He mumbles to himself, “and connectors are sealed here and… Ah, not here.”

You hear a few taps and then feel him doing something to the left side of the collar.

“Okay, let’s try this again,” He takes a step back, “give it some juice Tuna.”

You furrow your brow and concentrate, channelling the sparks in your system up to your horns. They fizz and crackle, the metal clips giving you static feedback that makes your scalp tingle. Dirk nods, giving you the signal to increase the power. You do so, glancing at the box out of the corner of your eye. You’ve never actually seen it do anything before, and you’re not sure if it even will, but you keep watching it as you steadily fire more psionics down the cables. You like that Dirk colour coded them – red for the box and blue for your collar – indicating which type of energy they will take. Neither of you really want a repeat of the first time you tried this; do you know how painful it is for a psionic to electrocute themselves? Very, especially because it gives you a headache that lasts for _weeks_.

Alas, even with all of the fancy wiring, the box remains as still as ever.

“Dammit.” Dirk mutters under his breath, frowning as he examines the box.

You chirr sadly at him, “I’m thorry.”

You feel bad that you can never make anything work for him. Maybe he’d be better off just using Sollux?

“It’s not your fault Tuna,” Dirk reassures you, removing the equipment on you and then patting your head, “I’d have probably worked this out by now if I was allowed to use the lab.” He folds his arms with a sigh, “I blow something up one time and suddenly I’m not trustworthy, honestly it’s as if they’ve never done an experiment in their lives.”

You chuckle, then Tula’s voice outside draws an impulsive chirp from your throat.

“I’ll go work on this some more and then we can try again later, go hang out with your girl.” Dirk gives you a scratch between the horns, before collecting his things and leaving the cave.

Your girl is indeed waiting for you when the hatch to the outdoor pen opens. She gives you a wide grin and bounds inside, pleased to find that you’re not frazzled or covered in soot this time.

“How did it go babe?” She asks, beginning to groom you whilst she waits for a reply.

“Well it didn’t blow up but it didn’t work either.” You sigh, not even able to purr when she nuzzles your face.

“I’m sure it’ll work out next time,” She tells you, pressing a soft kiss to your lips, “you’re too rad for it not to.”

You smile and kiss her back, “Thankth Tula.”

She moves to sit behind you and starts to rub your horns, squeezing to release the pressure and stop you getting a headache, just the way your Moirail taught her. You always worry that you’ll accidentally shock them one day, badly enough to hurt rather than just making their fur stand on end like usual, but they’ve told you a thousand times that they know it’s not your fault. You wrap your twin tails around Latula’s waist and purr as you lean back against her. She’s really good at this. So good in fact, that you’re almost falling asleep until her hands abruptly drop to your shoulders and she lets out a slight hiss. Ah, that’s probably your Moirail come to see you.

Just as you expected, you open your eyes to see a tall figure outside your cave. You wave to him, then swivel around to catch Latula in a hug. She doesn’t look impressed with the fact that your alone time was interrupted, but manages a smile when you press your forehead to hers and whisper that she’s your honey bee. Satisfied that your Matesprit isn’t going to get mad, you shuffle forwards and hold your hands up, making little grabbing motions. It may look wigglerish, but it never fails to get your Moirail’s attention. A pair of cold arms wrap around your torso, lifting you up until your feet are hanging a few inches above the ground.

“The things you make me do for you Tuna,” Cronus says with mock annoyance, “I’m going to blame you if I vwake up crippled one day.”

You shrug and reach up to pat his cheek, “Blame acthepted.”

He laughs slightly, but before you can question it, his grip loosens and you start to slip. You reflexively throw your arms and legs around him, clinging to his body like a grub on a stalactite. He giggles, now holding you just as tightly as before.

“You’re too easy Tun.”

“Be careful with him,” Tula warns, “the Human was in here messing with his psionics again.”

“Tula I’m fine.” You grumble, annoyed with how much your friends feel the need to coddle you.

“Awv, vwant me to rub your horns?” Cronus asks, his thumbs drawing circles on your back.

“Thankth, but Tula took care of that already. But a thwim would be nithe.”

“A thwvim? Not sure I’vwe heard a one a those.” He teases.

You smack his arm, “Take me to the pool athhole.”

“Oh, you vwant a _svwim_? Vwhy didn’t you say so?”

You’re about to make fun of the way his accent means that he can’t say the word either – not to mention that he fucking _butchered_ it after trying to mimic your lisp – when he hauls you up over his shoulder, leaving you dangling down over his back with your legs in the air. You shriek and then laugh, waving to Latula as Cronus carries you outside. You’re still in the shock-proof suit that Dirk gave you when you’re dumped by the poolside, and Cronus makes no attempt to help as you try to wriggle out of it, preferring to watch with an amused smile. Ugh, why are you Moirails with this doofus again? Then you almost roll into the pool and he finally decides to offer his assistance, undoing the back zipper for you and helping to tug off your boots. Ah, that’s why; because even though he’s a douche bag sometimes, he’d never let you get hurt.

Once you’re both suitably lacking in clothing, you sit down on the edge and slip your whole body into the pool. Cronus dives in afterwards, making a few elegant laps of the bottom before he surfaces in front of you. He pushes his hair back, but a lone curl rebels against this new position and flops down over his forehead. You reach out before he can do anything, twisting the strand around your finger and then letting go, laughing at the way it springs up and then lands in front of his eyes. He always gels his hair, so it’s only in the pool that you really get to mess around with it and annoy him. He blows the hair out of his face, then grabs a handful of yours and ruffles it. You can’t tell how bad it is, but from his pleased expression you’re guessing that it looks like a squawkbeast’s nest. Well, more of a squawkbeast’s nest than usual anyway.

You retaliate by messing up his ‘do even more, getting a face full of water as punishment. Then he grabs your waist, pulling you close so that he can lick right up the side of your face.

“Eww! That’th tho groth!” You squeal, trying in vain to escape his iron grip.

“Nowv you knowv howv I felt last night.” He does it again and begins to tickle your sides,

“Haha – oh God thtop! – haaha! No – aaaahh! Hahaha!”

Tears are streaming down your face, and you’re pretty sure the whole island could hear that last scream, but thankfully Cronus stops just before you get close to pissing yourself. You poke him in the side a few times to make him flinch, being careful not to accidentally jab your claw in his gills. Sea-dwellers are total cheaters when it comes to tickle fights; you’re always too afraid of hurting him to really go all out.

“If you’re quite done?”

You look back and see Kankri standing a few feet away, arms folded and foot tapping. Oh God, he’s in one of _those_ moods.

Cronus lets go of you and swims over to lean on the poolside, “Hey Kanny, vwhat can I do for ya?”

Kankri kneels down, “Firstly, you can stop making your Moirail screech like a banshee,” he gives you a momentary glare – which you return – then leans closer to Cronus, “and secondly, you can tell me where you put all of my undergarments.”

“I don’t knowv _vwhat_ you’re talkin’ about, an’ frankly I’m quite offended that you think I vwould do that.” Cronus smirks, his eyes flickering down to Kankri’s hips, then back up to his face, “So, are you goin’ commando today then chief?”

Kankri recoils, his blush vivid even under a layer of fur, “Cronus that is highly inappropriate! I would do no such thing! Not only would it make me personally uncomfortable on an indescribable level, but it may also be triggering to others, especially the Humans who take time out of their lives to care for us.” He huffs, continuing in a much lower voice, “But if you must know, I am still wearing the same pair that was on my person yesterday, as disgusting as that may be.”

Cronus looks almost disappointed – probably annoyed at himself for overlooking that loophole in his plan. Then his fins prick up, a mischievous smile on his face.

“So you need a vwash then?” He asks, wiggling his eyebrows at the cherry-blood.

Kankri jumps back, narrowly avoiding getting dragged into the pool, “Cronus! You know I can’t swim!”

“Then let me teach you.”

“No,” He growls, “now please tell me where you put my belongings or I am going to lock you out of my cave for the foreseeable future.”

Cronus sighs, “Fine, fine, your panties are in the back a my shirt drawver alright?”

“Thank you.” Kankri stands up and strides off towards the Highblood caves.

Aw man you were just about to splash him and everything. Ah whatever, you can get him later, then he’ll have to go and change again. You don’t really see why he fusses so much over his clothes, you only wear your suit when you’re doing psionic stuff, but other than that all you need is some shorts and maybe a shirt. Not a sweater down over your ass and a pair of fucking high-topped leggings, plus some ‘panties’ – you’re so going to tease him about that later – and whatever else he’s got going on under there. Not that you even _know_ what may or may not be going on. You can’t believe that he said okay to being your Kismesis but still acts like you’re not even quadranted at all, not to mention the way he treats his _Matesprit_ ; Cronus is lucky to get more than a hug most days, and you know that they’ve only ever shared a nest a handful of times. If he’s going to be like that, then why doesn’t he just not have quadrants in the first place. Seriously, what does Cronus see in him?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're switching over to the Dancestors for this instalment, exploring some quadrant troubles that don't involve a Human. Since these Trolls are more wild than the canon ones, Kankri doesn't have his whole 'no quadrants' rule, however that's the only change I've made to his personality.


	6. They Don't Care

“Kanny?”

You take a step into your Moirail’s cave, where he is rather forcefully packing clothes into his drawers. His little panties to be exact. How cute.

He sighs, putting the last garment away and then turning to you, “Yes, Porrim?”

You press your mouth into a line, brows furrowed slightly with worry, “Talk time?”

He nods, standing up and following you to his pile. You are now Porrim Maryam, and you need to talk to your Moirail about the fact that he argues with his Matesprit as much as his Kismesis, and if you didn’t know better you would think they were all just Auspistices. But if you point that out then he won’t open up to you at all, so you remain quiet as he sinks into the heap of red and green fabrics. He looks up at you and sighs again, not protesting when you pull him into your lap and card a hand through his soft hair.

“He stole my underwear and then secreted it away amongst his own clothing.” Kankri says eventually, his voice slightly muffled as he hides his face behind the neck of his sweater.

“Mituna?”

He shakes his head, “Cronus, but if the culprit had not been obvious then I would have honestly not been able to tell which one of them had done it. It’s like living with wigglers Porrim, I don’t even feel as if we’re in a relationship half the time, and when I do there’s something in the back of my pan telling me that we shouldn’t be. They try to respect my boundaries and I can see that, but it’s not healthy for any of us.” He sighs again, “Sometimes I wish that they would just be rid of me of their own accord and get on with their lives.”

You have this conversation at least once a week, and as usual he always views the problem as their fault, insisting that they should be the ones to solve it or just leave him be completely. It’s sad really, how little value he puts on himself. Yes, he may talk big and believe a little too strongly in his own opinions, but when it comes down to the worth of him as a Troll – without the speeches and long words – he believes that it’s next to nothing.

“I’m sure you don’t really want that,” You say in a gentle voice, “I know that you care about both of them just as much as they care about you.”

“But they _don’t_ care-”

You put a finger to his lips and shush him, “Yes they do, otherwise they would not be in their own pile having a similar conversation.”

He frowns, “They’re talking about me? What did they say?”

“Nothing bad I assure you, they are merely worried.”

For once, he has nothing to say, just burying himself further into the crook of your neck. You want to convince him to tell them why he’s so closed off, why he rarely lets anyone touch him – besides you of course, and that’s only because he’s known you since you were both very young. You’re sure his other partners would understand just as you did; after all, they’re still with him sans any sort of explanation, so being given one would surely make his rejections easier to accept, right?

“I’m not going to tell them,” He mutters, winding a strand of your hair around his index finger, “I don’t need to make excuses for myself.”

‘ _It is not an excuse, it is an explanation’_ is what you want to reply, but you hold back in favour of comforting your troubled diamond. If only the poor sweetheart knew how loved – and romantically hated – he is, and that he would let the Trolls he has allowed into his quadrants to show this to him, instead of keeping his distance out of fear and perhaps a little stubborn pride. You pet his back and hold him close to you, content to stay in silence until he’s ready to talk about it some more – this must be really bothering him if he isn’t willing to speak upon mention of the subject. You just hope that Cronus and Mituna are equally satisfied to wait for him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A teeny tiny chapter to wrap up the first part of a teeny tiny Troll's quadrant troubles.


	7. Pressure Points

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A double update! :O

Meanwhile, as Karkat Vantas, you are having a decidedly less quiet experience with two of the Humans. You know that Eridan likes Dave, you get that, and you know that Dave has been training him to walk on a leash like Kanaya does for Rose, you get that too, even if you don’t fully accept it. You understand that Eridan wants to go out to shows, and be fussed over by Dave, and do all of that prancing around shit. It’s not your cup of leaf fluid, but you understand Eridan’s whims as a good Matesprit should. What you don’t understand, is why that blond asshole has set foot in your cave without shutting you out as usual. Or why he’s brought that idiot John with him. Or why Eridan isn’t here by the time Dave closes both of the doors.

You don’t even know where Eridan is right now and calling to him won’t do any good with the doors locked like this. No, fuck, don’t freak out, maybe they’ll go way if you give them a hint. You snarl at them, trying to look threatening even though you barely reach either of their shoulders. You’re also in a corner on the floor where they found you, because if you get up now they might try to attack you or something, and then you’d have to defend yourself and Eridan would hate you if you hurt Dave, especially after he made you promise not to. He didn’t say anything about John though, which is why he still has the graze on his shin from when you tripped him up with your tail the other day. He deserved it for calling you cute and then laughing about it.

“It’s okay Karkat, we won’t hurt you.” He says, bending down a little to smile at you with his dumb buck teeth.

“Like hell you won’t!” You growl back, leaving your teeth bared after closing your mouth.

Then whilst you’re focussed on John as he edges his way closer, you hear a scuffling to your right – where Dave is supposed to be – followed a footstep from behind. But before you can turn around, something grips the back of your neck, something warm and with blunt nails. You hiss and lash your tail at him, kicking out at his legs and clawing the air above your head, but Dave’s grip remains firm. You try to back up, hoping to tip him over by pulling his arm between his legs. Then your butt hits the wall after a single shuffle and you know that you’re trapped.

“Hey, chill out.” Dave tells you, stepping off to one side so that he can hold you at arm’s length.

You want to tell him that no, you will not fucking ‘ _chill out_ ’, but the words die the moment you open your mouth. He repositions his hand on your neck, his fingers sitting just underneath the base of your skull and their nubby claws putting pressure in just the right place. The skin around them starts tingling, a sensation that spreads up over your head and down across your shoulders. It’s like having someone rub your horns but you’re pretty sure that neither of the Humans are anywhere near them. You can’t even gather the will to do any more than growl at him; your arms feel like jelly and your legs aren’t faring much better, not to mention the way that your tail is curling up over your back, even though you really don’t want to expose yourself like this.

“Wow Dave that’s amazing!” John grins stupidly at Dave, then turns his moronic expression to you as he kneels down less than a foot away.

He is asking – no, _begging_ – for a fist to the face right now. If only your instincts would prioritise that over the fact that Dave is literally single-handedly turning you into a quivering, warbling mess. You didn’t even notice that your growl had melted into a low trill, reluctant and coarse, but definitely not threatening. You abruptly stop trying to make any sort of noise.

“How are you doing that?” John asks.

“It’s a pressure point thing.” Dave replies.

“But how did you find out about it?”

“I was watching Eri and Sollux play-fighting the other day, or I thought they were playing, but then it looked like they were getting pretty serious, until Captor bit Eri on the back of his neck and it just made him go all soppy.” Dave pauses to give you a light squeeze, sending you further into whatever ‘pressure point’ trance he’s got you in, “Some of the others have seen it happen too, but this is the first time any of us have tried it.”

John jumps back a little, now looking rightfully afraid of your bristling fur, “You mean you didn’t know it would work?”

You feel Dave shrug – the nonchalant prick – then he joins you and John on the floor, “Come and have a go”

Have a _go_? _Have a go_? You happen to be a living, breathing creature with feelings, thank you very much, not some toy that you can give back if you don’t like it.

John looks wary – and so he should – but after eyeing both of you in turn, he sits forward and crawls around to kneel next to Dave.

“Here, like this.” Dave takes his hand and places it on your neck, curling the other Human’s fingers to the right angle and then sliding them in place of his own as he lets go of you.

There’s a split second where your pan clears, but then John’s grip tightens and another wave of tingling spreads over you, clouding any thoughts of moving.

“So he’s not going to hurt me, right?” John asks nervously.

Dave is sitting in front of you now, “Of course not, listen, he’s purring.”

You are? Oh shit, you are. Something’s not quite right though; it’s too rough to be a purr. It’s more like a gentle growl, or perhaps something in between. You’ve _never_ made this sound before. But you’ve heard it.

John shuffles around into your line of sight, a look of concentration on his face as his eyes meet yours, “I dunno, it sounds like he’s growling to me.”

“Nah that’s normal,” Dave assures him, “they always sound like that when one of the others does this.”

‘ _That’s because it’s a Kismesis thing!_ ’ Your pan screams. That’s how you know this sound; it’s the one Eridan and Sollux make to each other. Fucking Sollux, you’re going to kill him for not keeping his blackrom shit private. If he’d just waited until Eridan was back in his cave to pounce on him, Dave wouldn’t have gotten the idea to try this and you wouldn’t be in this situation. Your situation being that a Human is teaching another Human how to be dominant over you. These fuckwhits don’t even understand blackrom, they have _no idea_ what they’re doing. You hope to the Gods that they don’t try any Troll vocalisations on you.

John hums thoughtfully, his hand flexing against your skin. A chirp makes it past the tightness in your throat and you shiver, the tingling running right down your spine.

“Watch out man, I think he likes you,” Dave pokes John in the arm not attached to the hand holding on to you, “I’m gonna start getting jealous.”

They are _not_. There’s no way.

“Shut up.” John laughs and rolls his eyes, but there’s a light red dusting his cheeks.

They fucking _are_. How dare they. You cannot _believe_ that they are flush-flirting over making you submit to them. That’s about as bad as quadrant etiquette can get. You’ve never wished that Humans understood Alternian more than you do at this moment right now. God you would give them _such_ a talking to.

“Do you think I could touch him?” John asks, “Like, scratch his head or something?”

Dave just shrugs again, “Try it.”

John looks doubtful but then tentatively raises his hand, swallowing nervously before extending it towards you. There’s nothing you’d like more than to take a chunk out of it, but unfortunately you’re still all soft and pliable, so it’s all you can do to make the rumbles in your chest more growl than purr. He just taps you at first, right between the horns. Then when you don’t pull away, he puts his palm there, smiling as he begins to run his fingers through your hair. Okay, you’ll give Eridan this one; having a human scratch between your horns is _really_ nice. Then Dave joins in and you’re one hundred percent purr, leaning into their touch, asking for more attention like one of those dumb barkbeasts that they keep as pets.

This is humiliating, but you don’t want it to stop.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is probably one of the chapters I've enjoyed writing the most, even though I don't ship JohnKat or DaveJohn/Pepsicola/Hammertime (thanks to a fan on one of my other fics for that last shipping name, makes me wish that I did ship them). I like their interaction in this fic though, and it also helped me figure out some blackrom dynamics for my feral Trolls (which I will add to the master list at the end of the fic).
> 
> Also, just out of curiosity, how are we feeling about the swapping characters between chapters thing?


	8. Nothing's 8othering Me

Your name is now Vriska Serket and of coooooooourse you’re the narrator for the eighth chapter. You mean really, who else would be granted this honour? Aranea? Uh, _no_. She’s about as interesting as watching white paint drying on a white wall, and as fun as having someone drill into your skull whilst reading to you from a history tome. But you; you’re special. You have mind powers that let you make aaaaaaaanyone do whatever you want them to – anyone except the Humans and the sea-dwellers, but let’s not mention that. What’s _she_ got? Her weird mind empathy? Oh wow such an _iiiiiiiinteresting_ ability, you bet that comes in handy, _never_. Who wants to read about a long-winded, goody-two-shoes feeling other peoples’ misery, when they can read about someone awesome like you making your Moirail slap herself with her tail?

Okay, lets drop the meta stuff. But really, this is some seriously funny shit happening in front of you. Terezi is carefully tying a noose around one of her scalemates, preparing poor Senator Lemonsnout to join the other misfortunate, soul-less balls of fluff and stuffing that are hanging from the ceiling of her cave. She probably would have finished by now – the trial that sentenced the dear Senator to this fate ended at least ten minutes ago – had it not been for you. Another twitch of your brow and her tail flicks up to smack her in the side. Not with much force, mind you; you’re not pitch with her or anything, you just happen to enjoy taking out your annoyances on the nearest living thing, regardless of if they caused them or not, which you’re happy to say that Terezi didn’t.

You really wish she wouldn’t ignore you though. It’s so fun when she tries to fight back and you end up making her run in circles until she’s dizzy, and you’re dizzy from all the exertion on your powers, and both of you fall into your pile and talk about nonsense. But this time she doesn’t do anything. Just sits there with her back to you, retying the knot no matter how many times you make her hand slip or put her tail in the way. Eventually you get bored and let her deliver Lemonsnout’s punishment, only slightly amused as he sways next to his fellow victims of ‘justice’. You don’t really understand all of this ‘court’ stuff, even though Terezi has explained it several times. Apparently it’s a system that Humans use for settling their arguments by letting someone else decide who’s right, and then dishing out an appropriate punishment to the loser. All sounds a tad dull to you, but seeing your palemate grin as she exacts retribution on her plush prey makes you just interested enough to care.

She jumps down from her perch half way up the wall and stands back to admire her collection. You think there are actually more scalemates dangling than there are on the floor now. She dusts her hands off and skips over to you, silently dropping to a crossed leg position.

“Now that justice has been served,” She says, edging closer, “tell me what’s bothering you.”

You scoff, “Nothing’s bothering me.”

Her frown tells you that she doesn’t believe you in the slightest, “ _Right_ , so then why were you playing with my tail like you do when something is bothering you?”

“Because I was bored?”

“No, you mess with _Tavros_ when you’re bored, you mess with _me_ when you need to talk about something.”

Dammit, she’s got you pegged. You offer a shrug, which makes her let out an exasperated sigh.

“ _Vriskaaa_ ,” she whines, grabbing your shoulders, “we’re supposed to tell each other things! That’s what Moirails _dooo_!”

You growl, your voice jumping around as Terezi pulls you back and forth, “ _Fiiiiiiiine_! Just stop shaking me!”

She lets go and smiles, shuffling right up next to you with an expression that says ‘now tell me the juicy gossip that’s got your fangs in a twist’, but for once she doesn’t say it out loud.

“It’s that stupid Human John,” You mumble, slumping back against the wall, “I keep trying to get his attention but he’s such a gormless _idiot_ that he doesn’t even notice,” You huff, speaking louder as you settle into your rant, “and fucking Dave is always with him, and I know he’s nice to us okay, and I know that you like him so don’t even try to deny it.”

“I wasn’t going to.”

“ _Anyway_ , John is so totally _moronic_ that every time I try to get _his_ attention, he just tells Dave instead. It’s like he doesn’t know what to do, I mean how fucking hard is it to just stand and talk to us, I know we can’t talk back but we can make noises and shit, it’s not as if we just stare blankly at him like panless animals. But _noooooooo_ , he’s too busy getting rejected by Vantas, who he seems to fucking _adore_ for some reason. Like, what’s up with that?”

Terezi listens and nods, running her claws through your hair and untangling the knots with practiced ease.

“I’m sure John will figure it out eventually,” She tells you softly, tucking a stray wave of black behind your ear, “and don’t worry, you’re _much_ prettier than Karkles, and if John can’t see that, then he deserves all the scratches Karkat can throw at him.”

You chuckle a little and rest your head on her shoulder, the slight warmth of her body lulling your irritation. You may bitch about her sometimes and have fights that make people – Kanaya – think you need an Auspistice, but Terezi really is the best Moirail you could ask for. She just _gets_ you, she understands the way your pan works and what all of your subtle hints mean, sometimes even before you know what you’re feeling.

Then, as if the mere mention of his name is enough to summon that shrieking voice of his, Karkat lets out a loud yowl, shouting at someone to “Fucking fuck off” and calling them a “taintchafe”. Charming. It sounds as if he’s in Ampora’s indoor quarters – this isn’t a surprise; they’re so lovey-dovey it makes you want to puke – which are opposite Terezi’s, so you go to your window and take a look, followed closely by Terezi. You’re surprised to see the two Humans you were just talking about leaving the cave, a grin on John’s face and Dave’s expression as blank as ever.

“Did he get you?” Dave asks, taking John’s wrist and examining his hand.

“Only a little, I’ve had worse.” John replies, not seeming phased by the red blood trailing across his palm.

“We still need to get it cleaned up, who knows where his claws have been.”

John rolls his eyes, but makes no attempt to struggle when Dave leads him back towards their hive.

“You think they’re Moirails?” Terezi asks, craning her head to watch them for as long as possible.

“ _No_ , Humans don’t know what Moirailegence is, remember?”

“But what if they have their own quadrants?” She says, sitting back.

You shake your head and join her, “Look, this is more Leijon’s territory, I don’t want to get into a discussion with you about shipping anyone, let alone another _species_.”

Terezi seems to be in thought for a moment, probably deciding if she should stay with you or indulge her new found love of shipping with Nepeta.

“Go on,” You roll your eyes and give Terezi a light shove, “I know you’re _dying_ to talk about it with her.”

She pushes you back – but it’s so soft that it might as well have been a pap – then smiles, “Thanks, you know where to find me if you need me.”

“I won’t, but okay.”

She crawls over to you and bumps her nose to yours, then springs up to go see a cat-girl about some relationships.

Having been fed earlier, you’re content to just lay on your back and stare at the scalemates hovering above you, listening to Karkat and Eridan argue about something to do with the Humans. God they’re so sickeningly protective of each other. Then after a little while, Karkat’s voice gets gradually more muffled as the sea-dweller gives up on talking back, and begins placating him with kisses. You know this is how it’s happening, because you may or may not be exercising your mind powers in the form of peeking in on what that shouty little asshole is seeing. And _hearing_ – my, my Ampora, what would Dave say if he heard you talking like that? You giggle and promptly drag your mind out of the gutter that is Karkat Vantas’ thinkpan. You may be bored, but you’re not _that_ bored.

Sleeping seems to be a far safer pastime, so you curl up and let yourself drift into a comfortable nap – as comfortable as you can be sleeping on the floor – until Terezi nudges you back into the world of the waking.

“Hey, get up lazybones, it’s lunchtime.” She tells you, keeping up her prods of your spine until you roll over and grab her wrists.

“I know.” You lie – you had no idea what time it was.

She makes the ‘ _no you didn’t_ ’ face and you make the ‘ _try me bitch_ ’ one right back at her. She breaks first, wriggling her arms out of your grasp. Score one for Serket.

“Guess I won’t tell you my great idea for getting John’s attention then.” She says, turning her back on you.

Shit. The score is even.

“Good, I don’t want your dumb advice anyway.”

You don’t get a point for that one; it is possibly the worst and most wigglerish comeback ever.

“ _Buuuuuuuut_ ,” You drawl, scooting so that your back is against hers, “if you _were_ going to tell me, what sort of advice might it be?”

“Hmmm,” She hums, “well it _might_ have something to do with wagging your tail and looking cute, because apparently that’s what Eridan does and the humans are super into it.”

You turn and frown at the back of her head, “So I basically have to be a fucking suck-up?”

“Pretty much.”

“ _Uuuuuuuugh_.”

You’re just about to roll back onto the floor and give up completely – there’s no way you’re acting like a barkbeast wiggler just to get John to talk to you, Ampora may not have standards but you certainly do – when you hear the Humans approaching the cave. Look cute. You can _totally_ do that without all the demeaning tail wagging and begging. All you’ve got to do is bat your eyelashes and not look like you’re going to bite his hand off. With your luck that’ll be easy-peasy, like taking sugar-filled snack products from a wiggler. Which you have actually done before. Hopefully this won’t be anything like _that_ fiasco.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some pale Tervris as promised! Will Vriska win John's dumb Human heart? Does Terezi actually like Dave? Do Humans have quadrants??
> 
> The answer to that last one is no. Obviously. But as for the others, you'll have to stay tuned and find out!
> 
> ((In short, I hope you liked this and that you want to actually read more. Also, I didn't even realise how much I loved pale TerVris until I started writing it, thank you to iceytoshiro for suggesting it.))


	9. Love Bite

You are now John Egbert, still on your quest to befriend a Troll, and no less discouraged by the bandage now wrapped around your hand. You hadn’t expected Karkat to be so quick, especially after how docile he was being when you did that pressure point thing on his neck. You’re guessing he didn’t like it as much as you thought he was though, because mere seconds after you let go, he lashed out and gave you yet another trip to the first aid room. You don’t mind though; every new Karkat-related injury is just proof that he’s actually paying attention to you for once. But you would prefer that he wasn’t so aggressive about it.

“Hey, try not to get bitten or anything this time.” Dave says, handing you Terezi’s share of the food.

“Yeah, yeah, I’ll be careful.” You smile and take the box, heading over to the side of the cage where the little blind Troll is waiting.

You’re not sure how she gets around so well without any help. Jade thinks it’s her other senses getting stronger after she lost her sight, but whatever is allowing her to navigate, it clearly isn’t working properly because when you’re a foot or so away from the bars, she darts over to where Dave is standing.

“Terezi? Where are you going?” You try to follow after her, but then another face pops up where she was sitting. “Vriska?”

Did they… Did they just swap places? You look at Dave and he shrugs, holding out the food he’d taken. You swap the boxes and pass Vriska’s through to her. She takes it gently, and with a smile so innocent you’d never believe that she had ever gotten into trouble. But she doesn’t open it straight away, instead keeping her eyes on you – including the creepy one with seven pupils.

“Aren’t you going to eat?” You bend down a little, but she just carries on smiling at you.

It doesn’t look like there’s anything wrong with her, she’d be curled up in a corner somewhere if there was right? Then she sighs and says something to you in Troll, looking downtrodden all of a sudden.

“I’m sorry, I can’t understand you.” You tell her, feeling guilty even though you can’t help being linguistically challenged.

She tilts her head as if she’s thinking about something, then sticks a slender hand through the bars. Your first instinct is to jump back, because you don’t need to give Jane another reason to shout at you, which she’s definitely going to do when she sees your hand. But the way Vriska just sits there patiently, pointed ears relaxed and tail lying still behind her, she wouldn’t try anything would she? You glance at Dave, who is watching Terezi as she chatters to him with a plush dragon in her arms, then tentatively give Vriska your already damaged hand – hey, better to lose one than injure both right?

She smirks and wraps her cold fingers around your wrist, claws poking gently at your skin as she pulls slightly. You let her draw you closer, trying to fight the urge to wrench your hand away every time you feel one of those cold spikes adding pressure. She gets you within range of the bars, and then brings your hand up to her face and begins nuzzling at the bandage. It’s oddly soothing, not just because of the cold but also how gentle she’s being, and how her eyes only leave your face once or twice. You reach out with your other hand, letting your fingers slowly brush the side of her head, just above her ear.

She chirps, her grin widening. You find your own cheeks stretched in a beaming smile. One of the Trolls _finally_ wants attention from you. This is the best day of your life. You could just cry. But you won’t, because guys don’t cry, especially not over cute things. Then something wet runs across your fingers, followed by a sharp nip. You flinch – which is a completely legitimate reaction – but surprisingly, Vriska just lets you go with a chuckle and a sly glance. You… You’re not sure what to make of this. Was that supposed to mean something in Troll language? Well she seems happy enough, and the bite wasn’t hard enough to draw blood, so no harm done you suppose.

“Hey.”

Dave almost makes you jump out of your skin, and when you spin around with a hand on your chest, he quirks an eyebrow.

“Did I interrupt something?” He’s got his poker face on as usual, but there’s the hint of a smug undertone to his voice.

“No,” You look back at Vriska, who is quietly tucking into her food, “she didn’t want to eat so I was trying to convince her.”

He looks past you and nods approvingly, “Looks like it worked, nice going Egbert.”

You grin at Dave’s praise, and can’t help telling him about how Vriska actually asked for your attention.

But instead of looking happy, his brows knit into a frown, “She bit you?”

Of course he’d focus on that part.

“Not badly, just a little bit, it didn’t even bleed.” You show him your hand as proof.

“So it was a love bite then?” He teases, nudging your shoulder.

You shrug him off with an expression that says ‘ _really Dave?’_ , then quickly retrieve Vriska’s empty food box to hide that fact that you might be blushing. It’s not that you’re embarrassed per se, it was just his wording. You mean really, why would a Troll have any interest in a Human? They probably think you look like ugly, hornless monkeys without tails; you’re nowhere near similar. Vriska was just messing around, sucking up to get extra food or attention like the others do sometimes – Trolls are described as being cat-like after all, and if you know anything about cats, it’s that they have Humans wrapped around their paws. Yes, in that respect Trolls are most definitely cat-like, you think, watching Dave scroll through all of the pictures of Eridan that he’s got on his phone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this is so short! I've been so busy lately, but I really wanted to give you guys something this week since I'm aiming to update all of my fics. Don't worry, I'll make sure the next chapter is much longer and has more actual plot in it, but I hope you liked reading this one anyway!


	10. Walkies

You watch the way the sea-dweller’s eyes light up when Dave pulls out the fancy little collar – and the way his mate’s expression darkens into an even deeper scowl, now aimed at Dave instead of John.

“Be nice Karkat,” You warn him, “or you’ll have to stay in here when your friends go out.”

He puts his ears back and grumbles to himself, but when Kanaya gives his hair a gentle ruffle, he goes quiet. Seeing Karkat be so tolerant of other Trolls gives you hope that maybe he’ll be like that with humans one day. Then he snaps at John just for laughing and you think that might take a while. You being Jade Harley of course, acting as the ‘backup’ on John and Dave’s first time Troll walking. Rose is here too with Kanaya, since both of them are already experienced in that area and Kanaya gets along with both Eridan and Karkat, who will be on the other ends of the leads.

Eridan chirps to draw Dave’s attention, tail flicking impatiently as he fidgets on his knees. He’s so cute when he gets all excited and wiggles his fins, like a little puppy. Too bad he’s so grumpy with anyone except Dave. He seems to tolerate Rose though, or at least he does when Kanaya is with her. Kanaya is such a good tempered Troll, and pretty too, you can see why Rose wants to take her to a show, she’d win a prize for sure.

“Calm down man, I can’t put it on unless you sit still.” Dave says, putting a hand firmly between Eridan’s horns to stop him from moving.

The sea-dweller whines but does as he’s told, saying perfectly still with his fins perked up as Dave fastens the collar around his neck. Sea Trolls always seem so regal, and the pretty jewels Eridan wears make him look like a little prince or something. He’s not little, of course, in fact he’s taller than you when he stands up, but the point still stands; Trolls are adorable.

“There, all set.” Dave attaches Eridan’s leash and then moves back to let him stand up. “Your turn Egbert, make me proud.”

John nods and takes out Karkat’s spiky black collar, freezing when it’s intended recipient gives a deep growl. Eridan chirrups, babbling something in Troll language to Karkat with his funny accent. The smaller Troll rolls his eyes, muttering a reply, and Kanaya chuckles slightly. You can’t wait until someone invents a Troll translator, it’d be amazing to know what they’re saying and if they can understand English like you all suspect. Maybe you can convince Dirk to have another try at making one.

You kneel down next to John, getting a glare from Karkat for your troubles. You screw up your face and frown back at him with your arms folded. He holds eye contact for a few moments, then huffs and lifts his chin up, tipping his head to one side.

“You’ve got to be firm with him.” You tell John, who understandably still looks worried.

He raises an eyebrow, and says “Okay” then slowly fixes Karkat’s collar into place, fumbling with the buckle and then almost dropping it completely when a snarl rumbles in the Troll’s throat. But he gets the job done eventually, and without any help from the rest of you.

You’re so proud of your cousin, but you restrain your enthusiasm into a smile and a pat on the shoulder, “Good job John.”

“Thanks.” He grins back and clips on Karkat’s lead.

“So, are we ready to go?” Rose asks, offering Kanaya a hand to help her up.

“Yeah!” You and John reply in unison, completely overshadowing Dave’s “Yeah sure.”

Eridan trills and pulls his mate up by the wrists – in spite of Karkat’s protests – keeping hold of him as they’re lead outside. They almost seem nervous to be on this side of the bars, even after Kanaya gives them a smile and what you assume is a reassuring little chittering noise. You hang back until there’s some distance between you, then call your dog Bec over. He trots out from behind the first aid shed, tail wagging gently as he settles down by your feet. Such a good dog, you didn’t even have to tell him to sit – you swear he was born already trained. Bec has been your family dog and best friend for as long as you can remember, but as much as he’s loving and huggable, he’s also fiercely protective, making him the perfect guard dog. It’s not that you don’t trust the Trolls – even Karkat wouldn’t seriously injure someone unless he was really scared – but it never hurts to have someone else on the lookout for trouble, for the Troll’s protection too. They probably won’t like it though.

You can tell exactly when Karkat senses Bec; his hair stands on end over his head and all the way along his tail, poofing out at the tip. He stops walking and pricks his ears up, then when a few sniffs lead him to turn around, they’re flattened back as he jumps away, almost taking John’s arm with him. He lets out a loud hiss, followed by what you assume to be Troll profanities, judging by Kanaya’s expression. Eridan doesn’t make quite as much of a fuss, just growling a little and bristling his fur, but that’s only because Dave had the hindsight to distract him with a scratch behind the fin.

“Good boy Eri,” Dave tells the sea Troll, “you’ve got nothin’ to worry about.”

Eridan chirrs and nuzzles Dave’s hand, his eyes flickering between him and Bec.

“It’s okay Karkat, it’s just a dog.” John says, putting his hands out to try and calm Karkat.

The cherry-blood doesn’t seem impressed with his gesture, but after realising that Bec is just going to sit by your feet and pant, he relaxes a little. Kanaya, who remained perfectly calm the whole time, kneels down and talks in Troll to Bec. He responds with a playful yip that makes Karkat flinch and grab his mate’s arm, his face a mix between trying to be threatening and looking as if he would rather dive back into his cave. Eridan presses a kiss to his forehead, smiling when Karkat gives him a blushing scowl. You can just imagine him saying “not in front of the humans asshat!” – you’ve actually heard him use asshat as an insult before, which is apparently quite a privilege since he doesn’t use his human words in front of many people, but if it had been aimed at you, it probably wouldn’t have felt as much of an honour.

Once the Trolls have stopped glaring at Bec long enough to actually watch where they’re going, you begin walking towards the open expanse of grass on the other side of the mansion. There’s nothing particularly interesting beyond a few trees and rocks, but it’s perfect to practice with Trolls on the leash; lots of room if things get a bit unruly. You used to think it was strange, seeing the Trolls walked around like dogs whilst they’re wearing clothes, and walking on two legs, and talking in their funny language, but when they’re well-behaved you don’t really notice the leads.

They boys are into everything of course, sniffing and looking around as they try to drag John and Dave off of the path and down into some patch of shrubbery or, in Karkat’s case, up a tree. He’s a surprisingly good climber and doesn’t seem inclined to listen when John tells him to get down, but one bark from Bec has him firmly back on the ground. He stays closer to John after that, walking in front of him and next to Eridan to put as many people between him and Bec as possible. You’ve always seen Karkat as very cat-like, and the way he’s acting now only cements that image in your brain. He’d be such a cute companion for someone if he could just reign in that temper.

In spite of being more than willing to wear a collar, Eridan doesn’t seem too pleased about the whole lead situation, growling a little every time he walks too far ahead and the line goes taught. Good thing Dave went for the extendable one today, you’ll probably advise John to do the same next time so that Karkat doesn’t keep pulling so much.

By contrast, Kanaya wanders along happily beside Rose, occasionally stopping to look at a flower or point out something to her handler.

“Yes, it’s a lovely colour isn’t it?” Rose says, smiling as Kanaya crouches down by a particularly bright pink tulip.

Out of all of the Trolls, the little Virgo seems the most interested in colours and patterns, but like Eridan she is very discerning with what she allows you to make her wear. Honestly, you trust her fashion sense more than yours though, so Rose usually just gives her a choice and lets her dress herself. She even makes her own clothes sometimes too if you let her have access to the materials, which is incredible on its own, but what amazes you more is that they’re always sewn so neatly. Her sister Porrim has a penchant for design too, so it must run in the family, either that or they were trained to do it by their previous owner. It wouldn’t surprise you; the old woman who kept them was the state knitting champion for ten years in a row. You wonder if they miss her; they were both very young when your grandfather took them in, but surely they must remember some things?

You guess if they do it’s not bothering them; Porrim seems very happy to mother her fellow alpha Trolls, and Kanaya is on good terms with the rest of the betas. Oh and she’s besotted with Rose of course, trilling at the sound of her handler’s voice and snuggling up to her when you all sit down for a break. You know that if Karkat wasn’t here, Eridan would likely be doing the same to Dave, but as it is, his mate doesn’t want to be anywhere near you Humans so he compromises, with his head in Karkat’s lap and his tail draped across Dave’s legs. Dave strokes the fins splaying out at the tip, then begins explaining their structure to John. Eridan doesn’t even seem to notice, trusting Dave completely with this delicate part of his anatomy as he chats with the other Trolls and lets Karkat stroke his hair.

Dave says he loves all of the attention, even if he seems to be kind of antisocial most of the time. It’s so sweet how well they understand each other; you can’t wait until you find a Troll to have that kind of relationship with. You like to think that you have some sort of connection with Karkat, but you want a Troll you can cuddle with, not one who challenges you to staring contests. Bec presses his head against your leg, as if to say ‘ _aren’t I good enough?_ ’ and you chuckle as you bend down to pet him, hoping to convey the sentiment of ‘ _yes of course you are but you’re not a Troll_ ’.

You spend a while watching the Trolls and just enjoying the outdoors, glad of the warmth lingering in this dusky summer evening. Then just as you’re thinking that maybe you should go to the pond so Eridan can swim, you receive a message from Dirk.

timaeusTestified [TT] began pestering gardenGnostic [GG]

TT: Hey, remember how I said I wasn’t going to make a Troll translator?  
GG: :o  
GG: Yes!  
TT: I’m still not.  
GG: aww :(  
TT: But I am close to making something else, and I want you to come and take a look at it.  
TT: Are you busy?  


You look up at your friends and their furry companions. The reason you came along was to help out, but it seems like they’ve got everything under control, and you’ll tell Bec to stay just in case.

GG: Well I was, but this sounds exciting so I’ll be right there!  
TT: Sweet.  
TT: Bring Roxy too if you see her, she’s not answering my messages and I just know that she’s fucking around talking to Cali.  
TT: So grab her by the collar if you have to and drag her ass over here.  
GG: Why do I need to get her? Can't you just let her finish talking to her friend?  
TT: No. There's an essential part of my project that I need her input on and I've been waiting for weeks so I'm a bit short on fucking patience here.  
GG: Okay, okay, I’m going!  
GG: Ugh!  
TT: Thank you.  


timaeusTestified [TT] ceased pestering gardenGnostic [GG]

Honestly he is so difficult to deal with sometimes. Regardless though, you’re really interested in what he’s doing in the lab, even if it isn’t a Troll translator. You let the others know that you need to check on something back at the lab, then give Bec his commands and head over.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, remember this old thing? Me either.
> 
> But seriously, I left this for too long compared to my previous update schedule, and I'm sorry that this update is kind of short and just a bunch of fluff and background stuff. I've had a lot of college work to contend with and I spend most of my free time writing fics that come easily, or new ideas that I was really jazzed about. But hey, at least it's updated now, right?
> 
> Anyway, hope y'all enjoyed this, and let's pray that I don't take this long with the next one eh? heh, ehehe... *sweats*

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for checking this out and have a lovely day my dear reader ~
> 
> I now have a Tumblr! You can ask questions about this or any of my other fics and AUs, or just pop along to say hi! http://slavetomykeyboard.tumblr.com
> 
> And if you're interested, here's some extra info on the Trolls in this AU;
> 
> \- Instead of hives, they have caves, although some of them may use the word hive as a generic term for a place that someone lives in (an alternative to house or home)  
> \- Nests are for Matesprits and piles are for Moirails. The two are essentially identical in composition (being made from a mix of soft possessions from each partner), however nests are larger and placed within an external structure made from more durable materials (usually weaved from strips of wood/vines or hollowed out of a rock or tree)  
> \- As previously stated, they do not need clothes per se, but many like to wear them as extra protection and privacy. However only a rare few will care what they are wearing beyond it being comfortable, functional and looking marginally decent, as the majority of Trolls think fashion is stupid.  
> \- Troll colour pallets are limited to white, black and variations of grey, but the distribution of these colours over their bodies can vary drastically between the castes and even individuals with the same blood colour. Some may show their blood colour in small patches or streaks, but this does not appear to influence their ability to fill quadrants.  
> \- Speaking of quadrants, they follow the same pattern as the canon Trolls, however Matesprits and Kismesises have a more active role in reproduction than simply producing genetic material. In addition, Trolls genders have little-to-no impact on reproduction, and whilst some have preferences, the differences are purely aesthetic.  
> \- Cherry and Fuchsia bloods are the rarest and most highly prized, with Violets and Jades being in a close second. Psionics and others with mind powers are also seen as an impressive addition to a collection, not because of rarity but because of how difficult they are to control and train. Indigo bloods are favoured for their willingness to obey authority. Olive and Bronze bloods are popular with families for their naturally playful and/or docile natures.  
> \- Trolls are actually a lot smarter than they are given credit for, but their violent nature tends to make people unwilling to give them a chance to express themselves, or be simply unaware of their human-like level of thinking.  
> \- Since Jade's family knows and appreciates how smart Trolls are, they gave them bathrooms with showers, baths and toilets. It was a joke at first, but then the Trolls figured out how to use them. They'll never be allowed ovens though.  
> \- These Trolls would be a lot less feral with sopor, but unfortunately Humans have no idea of what sopor is or why Trolls would be better off if they were allowed to sleep in some.  
> \- They make a range of mostly cat-like vocalisations, including but not limited to; growling, hissing, rumbling (a type of angry purr), chirping, purring, chirruping (a two-note chirp), chattering (lots of short, soft noises in quick succession), chirring (a mix between a chirrup and a purr), keening, yowling and whining.
> 
> Blackrom Notes;  
> \- When not verbally arguing, Kismesises will fight to be dominant over one another, using a mixture of vocalisations and physical force.  
> \- The 'winner' will be the one who successfully bites the other's pressure point on their neck, causing a feeling similar to that of palerom/redrom horn rubbing. The 'loser' will then submit to their partner, and be released (in a healthy kismessitude, bites should last no longer than a minute or two) to engage in concupiscent bonding activities.  
> \- The neck bite is different to other bites, and aims to cause minimal damage. The desired effect can also be gained through the use of claws, however this requires more practice as it is not instinctual.  
> \- Some Matesprits will also do this, but only to give pleasure rather than to gain dominance, keeping their mate more alert and not putting them fully into the trance-like state, and definitely not drawing blood.
> 
> Also, there's a random NSFW EriKar drabble that I've set in the future of this AU, which you can read [here](http://archiveofourown.org/works/6135109) :3c


End file.
